--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Plays are architecture, and you can make…" description: "\"Plays are architecture, and you can make them stand in many ways that are hard to describe. And, I think, in our limited ability to describe them, we'v..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a9/sarah-ruhl-13926_ability_plays-are-architecture-and-you-can-make_1081436.jpg" --- # Plays are architecture, and you can make them stand in… ![“Plays are architecture, and you can make them stand in many ways that are hard to describe. And, I think, in our limited ability to describe them, we've substituted our inarticulateness for saying that there's one and only one structure.” quote by Sarah Ruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a9/sarah-ruhl-13926_ability_plays-are-architecture-and-you-can-make_1081436.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a9/sarah-ruhl-13926_ability_plays-are-architecture-and-you-can-make_1081436.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a9/sarah-ruhl-13926_ability_plays-are-architecture-and-you-can-make_1081436.jpg) > “Plays are architecture, and you can make them stand in many ways that are hard to describe. And, I think, in our limited ability to describe them, we've substituted our inarticulateness for saying that there's one and only one structure.” [Sarah Ruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ruhl/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Plays consist of multiple structural possibilities; insisting on a single form limits artistic expression. **In simple terms:** Plays have many structures, not just one. Key Takeaway Explore varied theatrical structures. Themes creativity theatre structure Mood thoughtful experimental Type theatrical philosophical When to use this quote - directing - scriptwriting - workshop - performance analysis Key Concepts multifaceted design artistic freedom interpretive flexibility Questions to Reflect On - What structural choice enhances your story? - How does ambiguity affect audience engagement? A Different Perspective Audience expectations may favor familiar structures. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/) [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Architecture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/architecture/) [Architecture Make](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/architecture-make-707298/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Plays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plays/) [Plays Architecture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plays-architecture-2747663/) [Saying Structure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saying-structure-2747664/) [Structure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/structure/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [Architecture is to make us know and remember who we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-jellicoe/architecture-is-to-make-us-know-and-remember-who-we-are/) [Geoffrey Jellicoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-jellicoe/) > [Architecture must make connections](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gottfried-bohm/architecture-must-make-connections/) [Gottfried Bohm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gottfried-bohm/) > [Of course I believe imaginative architecture can make a difference to people's lives, but I wish it was possible to divert some of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zaha-hadid/of-course-i-believe-imaginative-architecture-can-make-a-difference-to/) [Zaha Hadid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zaha-hadid/) > [Boundaries are basically about providing structure, and structure is essential in building anything that thrives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-cloud/boundaries-are-basically-about-providing-structure-and-structure-is/) [Henry Cloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-cloud/) > [The difference between architecture and building is that the former expresses an idea, while the latter is merely a structure built on economical principles.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/the-difference-between-architecture-and-building-is-that-the-former/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [They say that structure is freedom, and in a sense it is. 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The Egyptian is so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/as-the-architecture-of-a-country-always-follows-the-earliest/) [Nathaniel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-hawthorne/) > [“The structure of life I have described in buildings - the structure which I believe to be objective - is deeply and inextricably connected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-thomsen-brits/the-structure-of-life-i-have-described-in-buildings-the-structure/) [Louisa Thomsen Brits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-thomsen-brits/) > [A design may be called organic when there is an harmonious organization of the parts within the whole, according to structure, material, and purpose.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliot-noyes/a-design-may-be-called-organic-when-there-is-an-harmonious/) [Eliot Noyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliot-noyes/) > [Structure is nothing if it is all you got. Skeletons spook people if they try to walk around on their own. I really wonder…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-naggum/structure-is-nothing-if-it-is-all-you-got-skeletons-spook-people-if/) [Erik Naggum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-naggum/) > [A wiki works best where you're trying to answer a question that you can't easily pose, where there's not a natural structure that's known…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ward-cunningham/a-wiki-works-best-where-you-re-trying-to-answer-a-question-that-you/) [Ward Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ward-cunningham/) > [The essential functions of the mind consist in understanding and in inventing, in other words, in building up structures by structuring reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-piaget/the-essential-functions-of-the-mind-consist-in-understanding-and-in/) [Jean Piaget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-piaget/) > [I just think structure can make a book feel so much bigger. It's the architecture. You could use flimsy materials if you wanted to,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jami-attenberg/i-just-think-structure-can-make-a-book-feel-so-much-bigger-it-s-the/) [Jami Attenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jami-attenberg/) ## More by Sarah Ruhl > [“I hate parties. And a wedding is the biggest party of all. All the guests arrived and Orpheus is taking a shower. He's always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ruhl/i-hate-parties-and-a-wedding-is-the-biggest-party-of-all-all-the/) [Sarah Ruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ruhl/) > [Have you ever been so melancholy, that you wanted to fit in the palm of your beloved's hand? And lie there, for fortnights, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ruhl/have-you-ever-been-so-melancholy-that-you-wanted-to-fit-in-the-palm/) [Sarah Ruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ruhl/) > [“the theater is one of the few places left in the bright and noisy world where we sit in the quiet dark together, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ruhl/the-theater-is-one-of-the-few-places-left-in-the-bright-and-noisy/) [sarah ruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ruhl/) > [I do think there's a relationship between a book and a reader that's more intimate, in many ways, than the relationship between an audience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ruhl/i-do-think-there-s-a-relationship-between-a-book-and-a-reader-that-s/) [Sarah Ruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ruhl/) > [“When you read a novel, it seems that everything is clear, trite and understandable. 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He had his music. He would get a funny look on his face and I would say what are you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ruhl/orpheus-never-liked-words-he-had-his-music-he-would-get-a-funny-look/) [sarah ruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ruhl/) > [“What silly little things sometimes take on meaning in life, suddenly, out of nowhere. And you know they're little nothings, and you laugh at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ruhl/what-silly-little-things-sometimes-take-on-meaning-in-life-suddenly/) [Sarah Ruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ruhl/) > [Being dead is the most airtight defense of one's own aesthetic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ruhl/being-dead-is-the-most-airtight-defense-of-one-s-own-aesthetic/) [Sarah Ruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ruhl/) > [“Don't make a wall of glass between your play and the people watching. Don't forget they were once children, who enjoyed being read to,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ruhl/don-t-make-a-wall-of-glass-between-your-play-and-the-people-watching/) [Sarah Ruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ruhl/) > [I would never be essentialist about sexuality and structure, but I do think there's a way in which this male-arc has been talked about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ruhl/i-would-never-be-essentialist-about-sexuality-and-structure-but-i-do/) [Sarah Ruhl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ruhl/) [Explore all 48 Sarah Ruhl quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ruhl/) ## More Ability quotes > [I don't think there's a direct correlation between my sexuality and my skiing ability. But I think because I was so concerned about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-kenworthy/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-direct-correlation-between-my-sexuality-and/) [Gus Kenworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-kenworthy/) > [“the importance of ability. The things that make a great job great, I discovered, are rare and valuable. 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Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [Maybe law enforcement would like the ability to turn on the camera on your Mac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/maybe-law-enforcement-would-like-the-ability-to-turn-on-the-camera-on/) [Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/) > [I've seen guys come along with more ability - they've been faster or bigger or stronger - but they never worked hard to develop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-largent/i-ve-seen-guys-come-along-with-more-ability-they-ve-been-faster-or/) [Steve Largent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-largent/) > [The youth of India has the strength to move the entire World with a click of a mouse, we have generated that ability!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/the-youth-of-india-has-the-strength-to-move-the-entire-world-with-a/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [An absolutely necessary part of a writer's equipment, almost as necessary as talent, is the ability to stand up under punishment, both the punishment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irwin-shaw/an-absolutely-necessary-part-of-a-writer-s-equipment-almost-as/) [Irwin Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irwin-shaw/) > [I'd be more frightened by not using whatever abilities I'd been given. I'd be more frightened by procrastination and laziness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-washington/i-d-be-more-frightened-by-not-using-whatever-abilities-i-d-been-given/) [Denzel Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-washington/) > [Bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. 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